Mine car



June 28, 1932. E. H. BOSTOCK MINE CAR Filed Nov. 25, 3 Sheets-Sheet l I I l I June 28, 1932. E. H. BOSTOCK MINE CAR Filed Nov. 25. 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 gwue'nto'v Edgar 15550 3&007;

June 28, 1932- E. H. BOSTOCK MINE CAR Filed Nov. 25, 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 15 wawwmup,

Patented June 28, 1932 UNITED STATES EDGAR H. BOSTOCK, OF NUTLEY, NEW JERSEY MINE GAR Application filed November 25, 1929. Serial No. 409,685.

This invention relates to improvements in industrial cars such as mine, ore and quarry cars.

In cars of this type it is essential to provide a maximum capacity while the over-all height of the car is kept at a minimum, and the primary object of the present invention is to provide a thoroughly lubricated wheel construction which will permit the body of in the car to be positioned at substantially the lowest possible elevation so far as its bottom is concerned, whereby the depth of the sides of the car will be increased so that the capacity will be likewise increased but without'a 315 proportional increase in the over-all height of the car.

Preferably, the wheels are made sectional, being composed of a hub cast on the axle and a tread section rotatable on said hub, with antifriction elements interposed between said tread section and hub. The use of antifriction elements is, of course, desirable and, in order to increase the life of those elements, the present invention seeks to provide a novel form of lubricating those elements. Specifically, the invention consists in the wheel structure having a cavity therein in which the antifriction elements are located and in which a quantity of lubricant may be disposed, there being means for effecting an axial feed, so to speak, of the lubricant continuously so as to insure the constant lubrication of the antifriction elements.

In the accompanying drawings,-

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a. car embodying the present improvements; I

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view transversely of the car on the line 33 of Fig. 1;

Figs is an enlarged elevation of one of the traction wheels, a portion of the closure plate being removed to better illustrate the interior of the Wheel.

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view on the line 55 of Fig. 4, the axle being shown in elevation;

Fig. 6 is a perspective View of the raceway retaining and lubricant feeding plate; and

Fig. '7 is a similar View of the interior face of the closure plate for the wheel.

While the features of the present invention are applicable to various types of industrial cars, they have been illustrated in the present instance as embodied in a mine car. The construction of the car body and axle has been made the subject matter of a divisional application by applicant and hence a detail description of the same is unnecessary. As on shown more or less in outline, the central portion 10 of the car is below the side portions 11, and the plates constituting the car body are mounted on sills 12. The drawbar is indicated at 13. The central portion of the 65 car is mounted directly on axles let and cast on the ends of the axles are the hubs 15 for the rotatable rim or tread sections 16 of the wheels. In the present instance, the axles are in the form of sections of railway rails whose upper surfaces 17 present a comparatively large area for supporting the car bottom, said bottom being secured on the axles by rivets 18. The hubs 15 are locked on the axles v by having the axles formed with apertures 19 in the webs 20, through which a portion of the metal constituting the hub may flow. At their inner edge, each hub is formed with an annular flange 21 and a raceway 23 is m'ounted on the periphery of the hub between said flange and a retaining plate 22. Secured in the wall of the opening extending through the rim or tread portion 16 of the wheel is another race-way 24, and interposed between these raceways are one or more series of an tifriction elements preferably in the form of balls 25. The outer end of tread section 16 is closed by a plate 26 secured 011 said section by bolts 27 and the opening at the inner end of the tread section is closed by an annular plate 28 held in place by bolts 29, said plate overlapping the flange 21 on hub 15.

The space within the tread section is adapted to be filled with lubricant through an opening in plate 26, said opening being provided with a closure plug 30. Escape of the lubricant fro-m this chamber at the rear of the wheelis prevented by plate 28, the surface of flange 21 which said plate overlaps being formed with a plurality of serrations 31, in

which lubricant will collect and set or congeal, so as to form a seal between said flange and plate.

Referring more particularly to Figures 5 to 7, there is shown means for insuring the lubricant being fed axially of the hub into the space between the raceways of the anti-friction elements. These means comprise a series of projections on the periphery of plate 22. Each alternate projection 32 extends in the same plane as the plate itself, but the remaining extensions or projections are offset so as to force the lubricant into the space between the raceways. As shown in Figure 6, the extensions 33, 34 of each set are offset at one end from the plane of plate 22, which is parallel to the plane of rotation of the antifriction elements. The extensions, however, are offset in such fashion that those of one set are reversely inclined with respect to those of the other, for a purpose later explained. Referring to Figure 7, it will be seen that there is provided 011 the inner face of plat 26 a series of ribs or elongated pro-, jections 35. Preferably, these ribs are made in the form of arms of a spider, whose hub 36 hasan opening therein concentric with the filling opening in plate 26. The hub portion may, of course, be eliminated. As the tread portion or rib of the wheel revolves, ribs or projections 35 tend to roll up the lubricant or grease in the chamber within the wheel, so that the lubricant is moved to a position where it will be engaged by the offset extensions on plate 22 and, due to the fact that these extensions are offset or inclined in opposite directions, the lubricant brought into engagement therewith by said ribs will be forced axially into the space between the raceways, regardless of the direction of rotation from the wheel ribs. It will be appreciated that when the chamber within the wheel is practically filled with grease, a portion thereof will, of course, be picked up by extensions 33, so that ribs 35 are essential only when the chamber is partially filled with grease.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that by combining the peculiar form of axle, having the car body mounted directly thereon, with a wheel construction that permits the use of a wheel of comparatively small diameter, the bottom of the car may be located in a hori zontal plane that is as low as possible, with- I out offsetting the axle, while still afiording the necessary clearance beneath the car. The construction of the wheel, and especially the use of antifriction elements in the interior thereof, is not detrimental, due to the fact that lubricating means are also provided. On the whole, the combination of these several features permits the use of a straight axle on a car body having a maximum depth, without exceeding the limits imposed as to the over-all height of the car.

What is claimed is:

1. In a mine car and the like, the combination of an axle, a hub fixedly mounted on said axle, a raceway on said hub, means for retaining said raceway on the hub, a wheel tread, a raceway secured in said tread, antifriction elements secured between said raceways, there being a cavity within said wheel tread for the deposit of lubricant, and means on said raceway retaining means for effecting a movement of the lubricant axially of said hub for lubrication of said anti-friction elements.

2. In a mine car and the like, the combination of an axle, a hub fixed thereon, a raceway on said hub, a disk like plate secured to said hub at the end of said axle, said plate retaining said raceway on the hub, a tubular like tread surrounding said hub, a raceway within said tread, anti-friction elements interposed between said raceways, closures for the ends of said tread whereby a pocket for lubricant is formed within the wheel, and means carried by said plate on said hub for feeding lubricant axially of the space between said raceways.

3. In a mine car and the like, the combination of an axle, a hub fixed thereon, a raceway on said hub, a disk like plate secured to said hub at the end of said axle, a tubular like tread surrounding said hub, a raceway within said tread, anti-friction elements interposed between said raceways, closures for the ends of said tread whereby a pocket for lubricant is formed within the wheel, means carried by said plate on said hub for feeding lubricant axially of the space between said raceways during rotation of the wheel in either direction, and means for forcing the lubricant into position to be engaged by said feeding means. 4. In a mine car and the like, the combination of an axle, a hub fixed thereon, a raceway on said hub, a disk like plate secured to said hub at the end of said axle, a tubular like tread surrounding said hub, a raceway within said tread, anti-friction elements interposed between said raceways, closures for the ends of said tread whereby a pocket for lubricant is formed within the wheel, means carried by said plate on said hub for feeding lubricant axially of the space between said raceways, and a series of radially disposed projections on the inner face of the closure for one end of said tread for moving the lubricant into position to be engaged by said lubricant feeding means.

5. In a mine car and the like, the combination of an axle, a hub fixed thereon, a raceway on said hub, a disk like plate secured to said hub at the end of said axle, a tubular like tread surrounding said hub, a raceway within said tread, anti-friction elements interposed between said raceways, closures for the ends of said tread whereby a pocket for lubricant is formed within the wheel, a series of projections on the periphery of said plate disposed at an angle to the plane of rotation of said anti-friction elements, and a second series of similar projections on said plate, also at an angle to said plane of rotation of the anti-friction elements, the projections of one series being oppositely disposed to those of the other series.

6. In a mine car and the like, the combination of an axle, a hub fixed on the end of said axle, an annular projection on said hub, a tubular tread portion surrounding said hub, anti-friction elements interposed between said tread and hub, a closure plate for one end of said tread attached to said tread portion, and a second closure plate attached to the opposite end of said tread portion and overlapping one face of the annular flange on said hub, said face of said flange having a" multiplicity of serrations therein for the accumulation of lubricant.

7. In a mine car and the like, the vcombination of an axle, a hub fixed on one end of said axle, an annular flange on said hub, a raceway on said hub, a plate attached to said hub, said raceway being retained on said hub by said plate and hub flange, a tubular tread portion surrounding said hub, a raceso way within said tread portion, anti-friction elements interposed between said raceways, a closure for one end of said tubular portion, closure means attached to the opposite end of said tread portion and overlapping said hub flange, and means formed integrally with the plate attached to said hub for feeding lubricant axially of the space between said raceways.

EDGAR H. BOSTOCK. 

